FocusTrue and false messages
Connection to the wholeNarratives and letters contrast competing claims about the LORD's word and address life under Babylonian power, including the exiles' situation.
interpretation Jeremiah 27:9
KJVTherefore hearken not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon:
Read it in context
The Yoke of Nebuchadnezzar
Start reading at Jeremiah 27:1 (Jeremiah 27:1 to Jeremiah 27:22).
An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
Narratives and letters contrast competing claims about the LORD's word and address life under Babylonian power, including the exiles' situation.
- 27:1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah came this word unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
- 27:2 Thus saith the LORD to me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck,
- 27:3 And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah;
- 27:4 And command them to say unto their masters, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall ye say unto your masters;
- 27:5 I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me.
- 27:6 And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him.
- 27:7 And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him.
- 27:8 And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.
- 27:9 Therefore hearken not ye to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon:
- 27:10 For they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out, and ye should perish.
- 27:11 But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.
- 27:12 I spake also to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
- 27:13 Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon?
- 27:14 Therefore hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you.
- 27:15 For I have not sent them, saith the LORD, yet they prophesy a lie in my name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you.
- 27:16 Also I spake to the priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of the LORD's house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon: for they prophesy a lie unto you.
- 27:17 Hearken not unto them; serve the king of Babylon, and live: wherefore should this city be laid waste?
- 27:18 But if they be prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon.
- 27:19 For thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city,
- 27:20 Which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not, when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem;
- 27:21 Yea, thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem;
- 27:22 They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be until the day that I visit them, saith the LORD; then will I bring them up, and restore them to this place.
Who
- Who wrote the book? Jeremiah son of Hilkiah is the prophet behind the book, with Baruch serving as his scribe. The complete collection includes narrative and a historical appendix as well as Jeremiah's dictated words. Biblical references: Jeremiah 1:1; Jeremiah 36:4; Jeremiah 36:32. stated in the text
- Who was present or being addressed in this passage? In the surrounding chapter context (Jeremiah 27:1–28:17): Jeremiah addresses the royal and diplomatic setting concerning Babylon's yoke, and confronts Hananiah before priests and people. stated in the text
- Who was the book written to? Judah and Jerusalem before and during the Babylonian crisis, exiles in Babylon, and later readers of the preserved prophetic collection. Individual oracles name additional recipients. Biblical references: Jeremiah 2:2; Jeremiah 29:1; Jeremiah 46:1. stated in the text
What
- What is the topic of this reading unit? The Yoke of Nebuchadnezzar. Read Jeremiah 27:1 through Jeremiah 27:22 as a connected unit. interpretation
- How does it contribute to the book? Narratives and letters contrast competing claims about the LORD's word and address life under Babylonian power, including the exiles' situation. interpretation
When
- When are the events or message set? The opening dates Jeremiah's ministry from Josiah's reign toward the captivity of Jerusalem. Individual messages also name particular reigns and events, and the book is not arranged as a simple diary. book background
Where
- What is the book’s geographic setting? Judah and Jerusalem dominate, with messages to exiles in Babylon, accounts involving Egypt, and oracles concerning other nations. book background
- Where does the context start? This passage sits in The Yoke of Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 27:1 to Jeremiah 27:22). Start reading at Jeremiah 27:1. An editorial reading unit, not a claim that the surrounding context stops here. Book background below applies to the shared passage; individual verses may need more specific explanation.
How
- How does this book connect with Jesus Christ? Hebrews explicitly quotes Jeremiah's new-covenant promise in its explanation of Christ's priestly work. The quotation retains the named houses of Israel and Judah; later application should account for that wording. See Jeremiah 31:31, Hebrews 8:8, Hebrews 8:10. interpretation
- How should this book guide our response? Listen to unwelcome truth and distinguish it from reassuring claims unsupported by God's word. Do not detach promises of restoration from the judgment, exile, and response described around them. interpretation
Cited: Jeremiah 27:1, Jeremiah 27:22, Jeremiah 31:31, Hebrews 8:8, Hebrews 8:10
Who wrote it, and how we know
Jeremiah, with Baruch as scribe
Named in Scripture
What Scripture saysThe book names Jeremiah and records that Baruch wrote at his dictation.
Jeremiah 1:1Jeremiah 36:4Jeremiah 36:32
Early traditionTradition names Jeremiah with Baruch as scribe.
What is debatedThe closing chapter parallels 2 Kings and appears to be added.
Related passages
- hearken Jer 27:14-16 Jer 14:14 Jer 23:16,25,32 Jer 29:8 Exod 7:11 Deut 18:10-12,14 Josh 13:22 Isa 8:19
- dreamers Isa 47:12-14
Cross references from CrossReferences-org (CC BY 4.0).
Macro-Structure
See how this passage fits the chapter and the book.
Macro-Structure of Jeremiah 27
Jeremiah records words associated with his prophetic ministry and accounts surrounding Judah's fall. The book is not arranged as one continuous dated diary. Read each oracle's audience, occasion, and conditions rather than assigning every promise to every reader. Local headings and stanza divisions are editorial reading aids adapted from public-domain BSB headings; verse boundaries and Scripture links use the KJV. Connections describe the surrounding book movement.
Jeremiah 1:1 Jeremiah 1:2 Jeremiah 36:4
Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.
Macro-Structure of Jeremiah
Jeremiah records words associated with his prophetic ministry and accounts surrounding Judah's fall. The book is not arranged as one continuous dated diary. Read each oracle's audience, occasion, and conditions rather than assigning every promise to every reader.
Jeremiah 1:1 Jeremiah 1:2 Jeremiah 36:4
Jeremiah's call
Jeremiah 1:1–19FocusCommission and opposition
Connection to the wholeThe call establishes the prophet's task and the opposition he will face in delivering the LORD's words.
interpretation Judah's unfaithfulness and announced judgment
Jeremiah 2:1–25:38FocusWarning, intercession, and refusal
Connection to the wholeOracles and enacted signs expose covenant unfaithfulness and the coming judgment, including the warning about Babylon.
interpretation FocusTrue and false messages
Connection to the wholeNarratives and letters contrast competing claims about the LORD's word and address life under Babylonian power, including the exiles' situation.
interpretation Promises of restoration
Jeremiah 30:1–33:26FocusReturn, covenant, and hope
Connection to the wholeWords of restoration appear amid announced judgment, including the new covenant promise; their wording and named audience must remain visible.
interpretation Jerusalem's fall and its aftermath
Jeremiah 34:1–45:5FocusRejected words and continuing disobedience
Connection to the wholeThe accounts follow conflicts around the prophetic word, the destruction of Jerusalem, and the choices of survivors, with a word to Baruch.
interpretation Oracles against the nations
Jeremiah 46:1–51:64FocusJudgment on the surrounding powers
Connection to the wholeThe collected oracles extend the judgment announcements beyond Judah and culminate in the words against Babylon.
interpretation The fall of Jerusalem recounted
Jeremiah 52:1–34FocusDestruction and the exiled king
Connection to the wholeThe historical appendix recounts the disaster and closes with Jehoiachin's release, placing the preceding messages beside their historical aftermath.
interpretation Suggested literary divisions. Headings summarize the passage; they are not part of the biblical text.